The present invention relates to the field of athletic equipment, and more particularly, to batting practice devices.
The prior art, shown by U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,397,885; 3,442,510; 4,138,107; 1,554,409; and 4,050,694, discloses various structures most of which utilize elastic cords attached to a ball which return the ball after it has been hit by a bat, racket or other object. A problem with these types of devices when used for a baseball batting practice is that the impetus applied to the ball is so great that the balls flail about at high speeds endangering the user. U.S. Pat. No. 3,442,510, reflects this problem by the disclosure of protective screens employed there. Another problem with these types of devices is that once the ball has been hit there is a substantial delay before the ball stops bouncing around and assumes a position whereon it can be struck again.
Some prior art structures (U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,397,885, and 4,050,694) avoid this problem by suspending the ball from an elevated support by a nonelastic cord. These structures also have problems, however, in that the cord becomes wound about the horizontal support after the ball has been hit; or if the cord is pivotally connected, the ball spins about the support in a circular motion after being hit. Here again, there is a substantial delay before the ball returns to its normal position or is unwound from the support. In fact, the ball must usually be steadied by hand to stop it from swinging backward and forward and from side to side. In addition, the structures of the prior art are very difficult to adjust to accomodate different height batters.
There is, thus, a need for a batting practice device which avoids the above set forth problems of the prior art.